Clock-bank.



W E. PORTER.

CLOCK BANK.

APPLICATION FILED 33.26, 1910,

Patented NW. 2%, 1910.

view thereofin vertical central section on.

UNITED srATns "PATENT OFFICE.

WILSON E. PORTER, OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNQE TO NEW HAVEN CLOCK 00., OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, A CORPORATION.

' A omen-BANK.

Specification ot Iettcts I'atent.

I Application filed February 26, 1910. Serial No. 6,222.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Wrnson E. PORTER, a citizen of the United States, residing at New Haven, in the county of New Haven and State of Connecticut, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Clock- Figure l a. view in rear elevation of u clock-brink constructed in accordance with my invention with the back of thecase removed and showing the locking of the winding-arbor of the clock by the coin-mechanism of the bank, the locking-pawl being shown in its retired position by broken linesas well as the operating-handle. Fig. 2 "a the line a-b of'Fig. 1 3 a plan view of the clock. Fig. 4; a broken view inyertical section on the line cd of Fig. 1 showing a coin resting upon the to'eof the releasing lever in position to be crowded downward by the depression of the operating-handle,

whereby the releasing-lever is swung forward 'for permitting the operating-handle to move to the limit of its downward excursion for swinging the pawl away from the ratchet controlling the winding-arbo1i Fig. 5 a detached view partly in elevation and partly in section of the key and its hub and locking-ratchet.

My invention relates to an improvement in that class of clock banks, so called, in which the clock is made to illustrate the old adage, Time is money by being constructed so that it cannot be re-wound except by the introduction of a coin, the object of my present invention being to produce a' clock of the character described in which the coin-mechanism is constructed with particular reference to simplicity, reliability of perfon pance, and non-liability to derangement.

With these ends in view my invention consists in a clocksbank having certain details of construction and combinations of lockin parts as will be hereinafter described and pointed out in the claims.

In carrying out my invention as herein shown, I employ a small circular C10Ck movement 2 of the marine type, This movement, which may be of any'ap roved construction and which needs no etailed description, is mounted in a circular opening 3 in the .front of a sheet-metal case 4 which is rectangular in general form and furnished with a removable bottom 5 seciired in place bya lock (not shown) the key of which is Patented Noy. 29', 1910;

i'equired to get the money out of the bank.

The winding-arbor 6 of the clock-movement '2 has screw'edupon itthe hub 'Z of a lockingratchet 8 which is counterbored and threaded for the3reception of the threaded inner end-of a key 9 furnished at its outer. end

with an or inary bow or thumb-piece -10 which projects through the back of the ease in position for the winding of the clock by turning the key from right to left in the 'di- -rection of thearrow a in Fig, 1. Normally; however, the key cannot be turned on eccount of the engagement of a tooth of the locking-ratchet 8 by e locking-pawlll form- .in one arm of a lever 12 hung upon a stud 13 rojecting fromthe clock-movement 2.

spring 14: engaged with the lever 12 exerts a constant efiort to keep the awl '11 in engagement with a stop-tooth o the -ratchet 8. The said lever 12 isforme with an unlocking arm 15- located in the path of a, finger 16 extending inwardly at a rightang e from the lower end of a vertically movable operating-plate 17- bar- 23 offset-ting from the lower end of; n

operating-handle 24; projecting upward through a slot 25 in the top ofjthe .clockcase of which it forms the handle. As

shown the said handle 24 which is termed. r00

' pin 38 carried with a rectangular opening 26, is made inte ral with the said bar 23 and plate 17. A helical spring 27 connected at its upper end with the'top of the clock-case is attached its projected position as shown in Figs. 1, and 2. In the absence of a coin, the handle be pushed inward against the ten 24 ma sion 0 the spring 27 until it'is stopped'by the engagement of a stop-shoulder 29 on the plate 17 with a stop-pin 3O projecting inward through a slot 31 in'the inner plate 20 of the coin-chute, .from'the toe of a releasing-lever 32 hun between the plates 20 and 21 of the coinute on a pivot 33.- A coiled spring 34 on the pivot 33 exerts a constant elfort to swing the lever-32 forward and thus hold the stop-pin 30 in position 'to be engaged bythe stop-shoulder 29 when the operating-handle 24 is depressed without the introduction of a coin into the coin-chute. f v

The top of the case 4 is formed with a coin-$101335 opening into the up er end of the coin-chute which is fo e with an incline 36 down which the coin 37 gravitates so as to take a y the said tendin inward into the c ute'through a vertica clearance-slot 39 inj'he-inner plate20 of the chute. As soon as a coin is introduced into the slot -35-it immediately grav'itates into a position in which its lower-edge engages with the forwardly bent toe'of'the releasingrlever 32 by which the coinwill be supported at a point directly below the operating-pin 38. Lowwhen the operatinghandle 24-is pressed downward the pin. 38 will be engaged with'the up er edge of the coin which will becrowded ownward with the effect of swinging the releasing-lever 32 rearward against the tension of the spring 33, whereby the stop- 111 30 carried by the lever 12 will be swun rearward out of the path of the stop-shoul er and thus a .permit the downward movement of the plate 17 for a sufiicient distance to permit its inwardly turned fingers 18 to engage with the unlocking arm 15 of the lever 13 and rock the same on its pivot 12 against the tension of the spring 14, whereby the pawl 11 will be clamped from 'thelocking-ratchet 8 mounted upon the winding-arbor 6 which may now be ,turned from ri ht to left by the key 9 as required for win ing the clock movement. It will thus be seen that Time is money. in so far as the clock cannot be wound without the use of a coin to throw the awl 11 out of engagement with the locking-ratchet 8 on the winding-arbor 6 position under an operatinglate 17 and 6x and that the clock can oulybewound during the tune thatdownward pressure is ap plied to the operating handle 24 which will be innncdiatcly-returued by the spring 27 to its normal position when downward pressure on it is removed. The coins used for release ing the winding-arbor (3 to the action of the winding key 9 fall upon the bottom 5 of the clock-case in which they are retained until the same is opened 11 the banlckey.

To enable larger coins to. e put into the.

'43 arranged so that the ends of the nails will cross each other as shown in Figs. 1 and 2 and form a fender against the passage of the coins outward througlr the slot 44.

However the nails are given sutficient free dom of movement to permit the passage of a coin downward between them.

1. In a clock-bank, the combination with a clock-movement, of locking means nor mallypreventing the winding thereof,.and coin-operated mechanism coacting with the said locking means to temporarily retire the same to permit the clock-movement to be wound, the saidc0in-operated mechanism including a vertically movable manually operated lever projecting through the top.

of the clock-case and forming a handle for the clock.

2. In a bank-clock, the combination with a clock-movement, of. a locking-ratchet mountedupon the winding-arborof the said movement, a awl normally engaged with the said 'ratc et to prevent .the rotation thereof, and a coin-operated mechanism for temporarily disengaging the said pawl from the said ratchet, the said mechanism comprising a coin-chute, a manually operated operating-lever, and an independent, pivotal releasing-lever located within the coinchute and operated by a coin under the conlrol of the said operatingdever which pro-,.

jects through the clock-case and. forms a handle therefor.

3. In a bank clock, the combination with the-movement thereof, of a lockin -ratchet mounted upon the windil -arbor of the said movement, a pawl norma ly engaging with,

thei said ratchet,'a releasing-arm connected with the said pawl, an operatin -lever adapted to engage with the said re easingarm when sufficiently depressed, a coin-chute an operating-pin extending into the coinchute-fr0m the said 0 erating-lever, a re leasing-lever located within the coin-chute,

-' and a stopin cam-iedby' the releasingJevex and rinrn'ml fylimiting the downward movgment of the operating-lever, (he said relals 'ingJever being swung ()u t-of its nurnml p0- my; by 'the' introduction of a coin, splas t clear ifs'stop-pin from the operating-lever and permit a sufficient movement thereof to disengagethepawl from the locking-ratchet. I

v In testimony whereof, I have signed this spec'xficnhou 1n the pw-scncu of two subscr1b-- 10 mg 'wltnesses'.

i W i tn'ess'ek'q CLARA L. ll-11in,

(inn-1mm J. Ruin. 

